What Happened To Kelly McGillis?

Publish date: 2024-09-01

Known for starring with Tom Cruise in the original Top Gun, Kelly McGillis seemingly left the spotlight after her breakout role. Here's what happened.

Summary

Despite her absence in "Top Gun: Maverick," Kelly McGillis has had a successful career in film since the original "Top Gun" and has continued to act in various genres, particularly in the horror genre.
In 2009, McGillis publicly came out as a lesbian, reflecting on her struggles with self-acceptance and embracing her sexuality.
In recent years, McGillis has shifted her focus to raising her daughters, committing to her sobriety, and teaching acting at the New York Studio for Stage and Screen, while also managing her genetic condition, alpha one antitrypsin disorder.

Fans of the original Top Gun might be wondering what happened to Kelly McGillis, especially since she didn't return for the blockbuster sequel, 2022's Top Gun: Maverick. Although McGillis continued to nab parts in big-name Hollywood films post-Top Gun, nothing quite topped her back-to-back successes in the mid-80s. A year before 1986's Top Gun, she starred in the neo-noir crime thriller Witness alongside Harrison Ford. McGillis' breakout role in Witness earned her Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations, and helped her land roles in a spate of memorable, late-'80s flicks, including Made in Heaven, The House on Carroll Street, and The Accused.

Throughout the '80s and '90s, McGillis continued to work in film, television, and theater. In 1999, she starred in At First Sight, opposite Val Kilmer, proving that she still had the star power to sell films and command audiences. After appearing in queer cult film The Monkey's Mask and the Billy Zane-led direct-to-TV crime drama Morgan's Ferry, McGillis vanished from Hollywood for several years. While she'd eventually return to the screen, the actor ended a solid run in indelible genre-spanning movies. This gap in her filmography has pushed audiences who admire Kelly McGillis' work to wonder what she's been up to over the last several decades.

Kelly McGillis Returned To Acting In 2006 After 5 Year Break

For those wondering what Kelly McGillis has done since Top Gun, the list is long — perhaps surprisingly so. Apart from Witness, Top Gun is the movie most cinephiles associate her with, but she's had successes since the '80s blockbuster. After her stint in 2001's Morgan's Ferry, McGillis took a five-year break from acting. In 2007, she appeared on the screen again in the documentary feature Girl 27, but, when it came to acting roles, McGillis returned to the craft in 2006, shooting a B-horror movie, Supergator, that would be released the following year.

While Supergator seems like quite the pivot, the monster movie marked a new chapter in McGillis' career. After the flick, she landed roles in several other sub-genre-spanning horror movies, from the post-apocalyptic vampire horror film Stake Land to supernatural horror flick The Innkeepers to the Sundance Film Festival-selected We Are What We Are. While the actor largely took a break from silver-screen projects, she appeared in archival footage for the documentary Val in 2021 and had bit parts in made-for-TV films and shows, including Showtime's The L Word and Syfy's Z Nation.

Kelly McGillis Came Out In 2009

Kelly McGillis has had two high-profile marriages to men — Boyd Black and Fred Tillman — that ended in divorce. After splitting from Tillman in 2002, McGillis left the spotlight for a bit. In 2008, she guest starred on The L Word, Ilene Chaiken's drama series that centered on lesbian, bi, and queer women living in Los Angeles. In the show, McGillis played Colonel Gillian Davis, an army officer who's unwilling to live openly in light of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." To make matters worse, Colonel Davis seems eager to out one of the series' central characters, Tasha (Rose Rollins), after discovering Tasha's queerness.

Just a year after her appearances in several episodes of The L Word, the then-51-year-old actor came out as a lesbian in an interview with SheWired (via The Advocate). In the interview, McGillis reflected on her life-long struggle to be open about her sexuality, noting that, as a young kid, she felt God would punish her for her queerness. Since 2009, McGillis has been able to live openly, noting that life is all about "growing and changing, and coming to terms with who and what you are, and loving who and what you are."

Why Kelly McGillis Didn't Return In Top Gun: Maverick (Is She Retired?)

For those wondering where Kelly McGillis is in Top Gun 2, look no further. Despite appearing in some of Top Gun: Maverick's archival footage, McGillis isn't in the sequel. Director Joseph Kosinski has stated that the Maverick team was meticulous when it came to including legacy characters in the sequel: instead of leaning too much on pre-established characters, the movie aimed to set up new personalities. While the absence of Top Gun's Charlie doesn't necessarily hurt Top Gun: Maverick, it's still a shame, especially considering that McGillis feels she was "look[s] age-appropriate for what my age is, and that is not what that whole scene is about."

Kelly McGillis' Illness & Personal Life

Raising her two daughters and committing to her sobriety have been the central focuses in Kelly McGillis' life since she made the decision to leave Hollywood behind and settle in Hendersonville, North Carolina. In a 2019 interview, McGillis opened up about being diagnosed with a genetic condition called alpha one antitrypsin disorder (via Everything Zoomer). Prior to settling in North Carolina, McGillis, understanding the importance of self-care and sobriety, committed to helping others who live with substance-use disorder at a New Jersey rehabilitation center. In 2013, Kelly McGillis became an acting teacher at New York Studio for Stage and Screen, proving her appreciation for the art form endures.